Arne Slot insists Liverpool are “staying humble” but won’t ‘dampen excitement’

With Liverpool top of the Premier League, Arne Slot has insisted the Reds are “staying humble” but he doesn’t want to ‘dampen the excitement’ of supporters.

Slot can become the first Liverpool manager to win eight of his first nine games if the Reds triumph over Bologna.

While Liverpool are top of the league, through to the League Cup fourth round and looking good in Europe, the new head coach isn’t getting ahead of himself.

In his pre-Bologna programme notes, Slot noted: “The results at the weekend mean we are currently on top of the Premier League and this is something that the players should be pleased with of course.

“But at the same time we know that the fixtures we have had at the start of the season have not been as hard as they have been for other teams.

“This isn’t about dampening excitement, because we always want our supporters to believe in what we are doing and the possibilities it might bring.

“It is about being realistic and understanding our own progress because by doing this we can keep on obtaining the information that we need to keep on improving.

“If we can keep on being serious in our approach in this way it can only help us, especially as this is our first season back in the Champions League after missing out last time around.

“Staying humble, keeping our feet on the ground and knowing there is a lot of hard work and improvement still required is not just the right way for us, it is the only way.”

Virgil van Dijk “missed” the Champions League

It wasn’t just supporters who were disappointed to be absent from last year’s Champions League, the players felt it too.

Also in the match programme, Virgil van Dijk said: “We missed this competition last season, for sure.

“The Europa League was good for us, and of course we were disappointed that we didn’t go all the way, but there is just something special about the Champions League.

“It is the competition that everyone wants to be playing in and, of course, you don’t need me to tell you about this club’s incredible history in it.

“Some of the best memories of my career were made on nights such as these, but that only makes me hungrier to create even more.”